Hello Love!

It’s really hard to believe that this little blog has been around almost 3 years already.  Have I ever told you that before I started this I was a small business owner?  I don’t think I’ve really ever talked about it but I owned a little gift shop in my hometown.  Retail has always been in my blood and I knew that I was going to make a career out of it.  My lifelong goal was to be the owner of a Hallmark store and my parents actually own one now!  Unfortunately, it’s a 45 minute drive from my house so that’s why I don’t work there now. I owned my little shop for almost 8 years and it’s pretty much where my babies grew up!  My son was about 8 months old when we opened, I got pregnant with our middle a month after that, and the little came a few years later. It was a wonderful little shop but was just too hard to run and manage all that our little family needed, so I sold it in early 2015.

 Owning a small business isn’t for the faint of heart. Whether it’s clothing, food, or even running a blogging business, you’re in it to win it and it isn’t always a walk in the park.  It takes a lot of time, patience, and money to keep it afloat so that’s why I have a H U G E heart for my fellow entrepreneurs. Whenever I’m buying new things or reaching out to companies to promote here at Shaw Avenue, you’ve probably noticed that most are shops just like this! Choosing to shop at a small/local business gives you more options to buy for your loved ones this time of year and is so so great for supporting your local community.

When finding content to post here on the blog, I’m always searching for great, unique items at great prices that anyone can shop.  It’s not easy to get out and shop with three kiddos so being able to shop from home is also a huge plus.  One online company that I LOVE is Pink Blush! I had found out about them through another blogger’s website but I had assumed it was just a maternity website. I’m so glad I checked it out anyways because they have the cutest stuff! I first found the little gray sweater shown in the pictures below but when I stumbled upon the light pink booties the clouds parted and the Angels sang!  Aren’t they AMAZING?!  I cannot get enough of them.

My favorite part of the whole process?
They take PayPal.

I’ve been to many a site to buy things and have left after realizing they don’t take PayPal as a form of payment. I know that I can make secure purchases when I see that yellow PayPal clicker in the checkout page.  Are you the same way?  Not only can you make secure purchases but did you know that PayPal offers Return Shipping On Us (up to $30 in return shipping costs per order and 12 orders per calendar year), offers digital gift cards, and, my favorite, offers One Touch, where you can pay for your items without having to enter credit card or billing information.  I can purchase all my favorite things at a click of a button!

Shirt – Pink Blush // Jeans – Levi’s // Booties – Pink Blush // Purse – Rebecca Minkoff // Scarf – Daisy Faye Designs